Life is More with Portia Y. Clare

When the tapestry of human experience unfurls in the hands of a master storyteller like Portia Clare, you can't help but be drawn into the vibrant hues of emotion and narrative. This week on Writers Parachute, Portia, celebrated author and narrative artisan, joins us to weave together the intricate threads of storytelling, revealing how a balance between meticulous detail and reader imagination can create literary magic. We celebrate the launch of her newest work, "Life is More Than This Covington Pond," an inspiring invitation to explore the world beyond our familiar confines and to recognize the boundless opportunities that lie in wait.

Journey with us as we embark on a voyage through the emotional depths often found within the pages of children's literature—a realm where love, loss, and resilience dance across the page. Portia's beloved creations like "Best Friends Forever: A Puppy's Tale" and "His Name is Daddy" serve as anchors, examining the tenacious spirit of human connections. Our conversation also turns to the practical, offering nuggets of wisdom for authors on how to market their stories effectively without the need for a treasure chest of resources, and the vitality of book reviews in fostering reader engagement and author development.

Find Ms. Clare's Books :  here: ⬇️
Life is More Than this Covington Pond:  https://amzn.to/3SMkVXB
Best Friends Forever: A Puppy’s Tale:  https://amzn.to/42Ntztu
His Name is My Daddy:  https://amzn.to/48p3OkH

Connect with Portia Y. Clare at: 
Website:  https://PortiaYClare.com
Facebook:  https://Facebook.com/PortiaYClare
Instagram:   https://Instagram.com/portiay.clare/
Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/22041287.Portia_Y_Clare
LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/portia-clare-3583b624a/

Check out my Goodreads review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6276661384

👉 Be sure to follow the Writer’s Parachute on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter @WriterParachute
https://linktr.ee/writerparachute

✨🎙Subscribe to our channel to join our writer community for tips, tricks, author interviews, and more. We can't wait for you to join us as you embark on your writing adventure!✨🎙

🎙📖✒️ 👉 All episodes are available to view on YouTube and listen anywhere where podcasts are played every Wednesday!👈

➡️ Check out our website to learn more about us, our mission, podcast episodes, be a guest on the show, and follow us on social media. ⬇️
https://thewritersparachute.com

As always, we hope this podcast is a helpful landing on your unique, creative journey. 🪂

✨✨✨Want automatic weekly updates to your inbox?
Sign up here: https://sendfox.com/thewritersparachtue

Don't forget to check out Buy Me A Coffee here: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/writerparachute
Support the Writer's Parachute and become part of the TEAM!!!

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:02

Welcome back everyone to the Writers Parish. We're guiding author and writer dreams to a perfect landing. We welcome you back today and we welcome another special guest is Portia Claire. She is an author, writer and teacher. We're going to be talking to her in a moment about her new book that's coming up very soon. Life is more than this Covington Pond. That's coming out on March the 8th.

Speaker 1: 0:25

But, of course, first we always have to do that silly house keeping stuff. We'd love for you to go ahead and smash that like button, go ahead and hit the subscribe button and don't forget to ring the bell so you get notifications of new episodes every week on Tuesday here on YouTube or whatever platform podcast platform you are listening to us on. We are also on social media. You can follow us on Facebook, instagram, tiktok, twitter threads and now Blue Sky. We are at writer parachute. That's a writer parachute without an S. And, of course, if you have any questions or concerns about the writers parachute, you can go ahead and reach out to us at info at thewritersparachutecom. And now we want to get on with the show and we always start off with our topic of the week. Now, here on season two, we have been putting a lot of emphasis on reviews and we're not going to stir away from reviews, but I think we've covered it pretty well. Just reminder to all of our listeners next time you read a book, whether you like it, whether you don't like it, or whether you just have a neutral opinion Don't forget to thank the author and leave them a review, let them know. It's one of the few ways that they get feedback from their readers about their books. Helps them, helps you, helps the rest of the world know more about the books that they're reading. All right, so what are we talking about today and topic of the week? Well, we're preparing you for season three.

Speaker 1: 1:54

Season three is going to be all about storytelling. So what is storytelling? Storytelling is the art of writing, reading and all things in between. It is the creative process where we pass information from one person to another. So this time we're going to talk about details, details of story writing, storytelling.

Speaker 1: 2:18

So I often get asked this question how much is enough and how much is too much? Well, that's going to depend a lot on what kind of story you're telling and who your audience is. Obviously, if you're writing for a younger audience, where there are illustrations to help the readers, a lot of details are really not going to be necessary because they can clearly see, for instance, that Susie is wearing a red dress. So the author is not required to say that Susie is wearing a red dress. If you follow me, however, if you're writing for an older audience, let's say middle grade young adult, you may need to say that Susie is wearing a red dress, or you may need to infer she was wearing her favorite dress red, of course, because it matched her pair of shoes or whatever. However you want to put that across. But again, this doesn't help us with what is enough and what is too much.

Speaker 1: 3:21

Again, we talk about your audience, but we also talk about who is giving that information and those details. So, if it's a character in your book and in a fiction book, think about the character themselves. Is that character very voracious and vocal? Do they tend to go on and on and elaborate about the color of the sky, the color of their shoes, the color of the room, the fabric, the things of that? Are they interior designer, where these things would be of interest to them? Are they architect, where the structure of the room rather than the color of the room would be more important to them or are they just an average person going? You know what? It's a room. It had a door. There's a desk. Yeah, there's a bunch of books on a shelf.

Speaker 1: 4:08

Again, who is giving the information or those details is very important. It's also their perspective of those details. Someone who is an interior designer is going to notice things different than that would be of a person who is, let's say, a business manager walking into an office. They're going to notice other details. So details are important to whoever is introducing them, and what I would say about too much, too little or just enough is a very fine line. There are many authors who are very good about painting a picture in vivid detail about what it is that they want you to see.

Speaker 1: 4:57

I tend to be a little sparse with that because I want my readers to imagine what it is they think would be there. Both work somewhere in the middle works just great too. So again, are you ready to trust your reader to make that leap with you and figure it out for themselves, or do you feel they really need those minute details? Are those minute details going to be important later to the plot of the story, or are they just window dressing? Are they just extra words to take up the spaces? This is more what I want you to think about. I want you to think, instead of too much or not enough, I want you to think about who's giving those details, why they're giving those details and whether or not they're important to the overall story. So next time, when you're thinking about details, descriptions and whether it's enough or too much, think about why and who. I hope that's helpful.

Speaker 1: 5:57

Of course, we could go on and on and on about this particular subject, but we only have so much time. If you would like to know more, then you can reach out to us at info at thewritersparachutecom, or you can leave us a note in the comments. Either way, we would be so grateful to hear from you. Well, let's get back to our guest we have with us, ms Portia Wyclare. She is an award-winning author, writer and teacher. I'm going to talk to her about her newest book, life is More Than this, covington Pawn, which is out on March 8th. She also has a book that came out in April of 2023. His name is my Daddy and her first book, which came out in November of 2021, is Best Friends Forever, a Puppy's Tale. So Worship.

Speaker 1: 6:47

Clare has been privileged to serve in developing the minds and characters of children for over 30 years. A graduate of Duke University and Regent University, she maintains her love of learning and earnestly desires to empower the children who have been entrusted to her care. Simply put, portia teaches because she values children. Her love of children and family compel her to write stories that will help them recognize their quality, appreciate their value and navigate through challenging life experiences. Creative writing has always brought her joy, and writing children's books has been her passion since childhood. Portia is the only child of the late Randolph George Clare Jr and Jane Esterling Clare. She was born in Bentonville, south Carolina, and raised in Nassau, mahamas. Her family relocated to Bentonville, south Carolina, in 2015, where she and her mother currently reside. Welcome to the Writers' Prayer shoot, portia. How are you today?

Speaker 2: 7:46

I'm doing well. Ms Cowan, Thank you so much for having me. I enjoyed being here with you before and it's a delight to return today.

Speaker 1: 7:55

Well, thank you. We're always so excited to have our guests back. We love returning guests and always when they bring us another new book, and I have to say I'm very impressed with this new book. Life is More Than this Covington Pawn. The illustrations are just amazing, but we're going to talk about that in a minute, alright, thank you. So, as I said, the new book is called Life is More Than this Covington Pawn, which will be released in just a little over a week, on March 8th, and it includes a lot about imagination, curiosity and the zest for the new and good. I want to know why those particular topics were so important to include in your story.

Speaker 2: 8:37

Well, I will start first of all by letting you know that this story is actually a true story. It's my mother's story. My mother was Nan and as she grew up, her father consistently shared with her that life is more than this Covington Pawn. My mommy grew up on Covington Pawn and so all of the events that you see in this story actually happened in Nan's life. So it was important for me to share it, because growing up in a home with my mom and having her pour into me and instill into me those same values, letting me know that I'm limitless in my thinking and that I have opportunities to do whatever my mind conceives, helps me to want to share that story with other children.

Speaker 2: 9:31

So I was inspired to share it because I love children and because I work with children in a rural area who oftentimes have not been out of this area. They get excited about seeing something new that has been built in the town. They've not been to a town that may be 45, 50 minutes away in a car. They've not been to the beach, and they are about two hours away in a car. So when I had the opportunity to share this story, I knew what the impact could be for them. I want children to realize that life is more than their immediate surroundings. I want them to be limitless in their thinking, and this story, I believe, would inspire any child to do just that.

Speaker 1: 10:22

Well, I have to agree with you. I think just the way that you're approaching Nan's curiosity and where it takes her in her imagination and in the real life, in the real world are just fascinating. And it's just a good feel-good story. And I always love those too, you know, because it's like you could just sit down and you don't have to unravel a mystery. You don't have to sit there and figure out who did it, who didn't do it and who's going to say this, that or the other thing. It's just a feel-good like oh wow, I remember being this little girl. I remember what that was like and it was just wonderful. And her zest for life comes through so clearly in the story. So bravo.

Speaker 1: 11:14

Thank you very much. You're very welcome. So I love the rich tapestry that you have woven into the book. You're pulling the reader into your story and to the places that Nan visits through the story and, of course, her sense of wonder, through the whole, I would say, life adventure. You know that she's just trying to figure it out and I want to know I mean you sort of hinted at it, but I want to know what the inspiration was to write this book. I mean, I understand it is your mother and it is her life story, but what made you want to write it?

Speaker 2: 11:53

Again being a teacher of children. It is important for me to develop the character of children as well as their academics. I want children to believe in themselves and have value that they can recognize. A part of why I write is so that children can recognize their quality and appreciate their value.

Speaker 2: 12:18

I want them to see that they have thoughts that matter, and those thoughts can lead them to various places, those thoughts attached to things that they love, those thoughts attached to things that they aspire to become, and I want them to see, through the eyes of a child, that it is possible for your thoughts to become real, that you can manifest what it is that you were thinking about, wondering about, dreaming about, hoping for into your reality.

Speaker 2: 12:50

It is not far away from you, because you are limitless in your thinking, and the only person who can stop you from getting where you want to be or doing that which you want to do is you. And so anytime that I have an opportunity to write something to inspire a child to think beyond what they know now, to give them an opportunity to see somebody who looks like me, somebody who is my age, thinking thoughts that perhaps are similar to mine, or thinking in a way that is wondering like I do, I know that that is a tool and a resource for those children to dive into, become a part of and expand, as it relates to their real belief that maybe this could be me too. That, to me, is everything, because once you take blinders off and restraints off of a child, that child will soar, and there's so many people that will be blessed and encouraged because that child made a decision to move forward in something that they wondered about or dreamed about or really desired to do. So I hope that answers the question.

Speaker 1: 14:10

I think it does well and it reminds me of a part of what I was thinking as I was reading this book. It's like it seemed like you were sparking that passion in these children, in these readers, that passion that comes from the wanting to know. It's like that need to know, that need to do, and it's like in Nan's story. Her passion is she wants to travel, she wants to know things, she wants to see things, and it sparked that passion in her and that wanting and needing to continue that education towards her passion. And I think this is sometimes what we miss for children is that we forget that they have all the tools in them. We just have to be the one that sparks each of those creative tools to get them to where they need to be.

Speaker 2: 15:10

And having someone in your life to allow you to dream and to remind you of the dreams that you have been vocalizing, I think, is extremely important.

Speaker 2: 15:22

Nan's father played a very big role in her life, and so did her mom, and so did her aunt and the other family members. They allowed her to continue to dream and they gave her opportunities to see her dreams become reality, and I think that strengthened her spark to dream even more and to desire even more. So let's not downplay the role of the adults in our children's lives. As a teacher, I know the importance of exposing children to so many things, and, of course, as parents, whose voice a child hears beyond anybody else's, those responsibilities are great, but the outcomes can be, so grand if parents just take the opportunity to listen to their children and put them in position to experience their dreams and their wonder.

Speaker 1: 16:18

Right well, and I always would try to encourage with my own children, with my grandchildren. Some of the kids that I taught is just like try not to use the word can't. Maybe not right now.

Speaker 2: 16:32

You can you're capable.

Speaker 1: 16:35

It's just the timing's not right now. Right, not yet, I think, so many times we, as adults and as children, we keep hearing that repeated can't.

Speaker 2: 16:46

Yes.

Speaker 1: 16:48

And we don't realize how big of a wall it becomes.

Speaker 2: 16:52

Yes, and so we say I can't do that yet, I haven't done that yet, I'm not able to finish that yet. So that gives me hope that one day it's a possibility that I will Exactly exactly.

Speaker 1: 17:08

It's just it's all about timing and I do love that. Your book does kind of give us that timing. You know, it's like she starts very young in this story, you know, with this passion and this dream, and it takes her a while to achieve it, and there's something about the persistence and patience in there too that I really like. So, as I said, I loved it and you're pulling in their story and about her places she visits in a sense of wonder and your inspiration. So I want to know what it is that you want readers to get from reading. Life is more than this Covington pawn.

Speaker 2: 17:45

I want readers to understand that they can dream big and that their dreams really can come true. I want them to see beyond their surroundings. I want them to recognize that life is a lot bigger than where you live, that there's so much more to see, to know, to learn, to do outside of what it is that you see every day. I have experienced children who have lived in a part of town their entire lives and they don't know anything else. I've experienced adults who have lived in a particular place their entire lives and they have not traveled beyond that place. Now, for me that's, it doesn't register, because my entire life I have traveled. I have moved from place to place because of my father's job. So it's difficult for me to wrap my mind around it because it was not my experience. But I want children to walk away from this book with a zeal to learn about what is beyond their immediate surroundings, knowing that there's so much more to learn and do and be.

Speaker 1: 19:11

Absolutely, and I agree with you, and this is why I have such a love and a passion for books, because even if we don't move from our own front porch, we can travel the world. We can learn about so many things, and now with the internet, you can almost be there. I mean, it's not the same.

Speaker 1: 19:32

It's not the same as going and doing and the bravery and the courage and the commitment that goes into that that people often forget travel Some place that's unfamiliar. I myself am a transplant from Oklahoma to California and it was like I just packed up and moved here and everybody thought I was just gonna. I was terrified. I didn't have a job and have a place to live. I don't have anything. But you know what? I was okay because it's like I figured there's hotels, there's motels. I've saved some money. There's always jobs somewhere. I mean, it comes first. I can scrub toilets or make beds or flip burgers or something. It's like you're always away. If you're willing, that's right and it's just you have to. You have to be willing to take that first step with courage and trust that you have. Again back to it. You have all the tools you need to succeed. You just have to believe in yourself and trust that that you know. And here's the wonderful thing if you don't know, guess what? There's a book that'll tell you how to do it.

Speaker 2: 20:41

That's right, that's right, that's right.

Speaker 1: 20:47

I can't tell you. It's like people think I'm the smartest person in the world. I'm like no, I'm not, I'm just a very well read person. So you know, it's like there's nothing you can't find in a book.

Speaker 2: 20:59

So that's right, that's right. One of the things that I really enjoy using in my classroom is Google images in the middle of reading a story with my students. Miss Claire, what's that immediately? I go to Google images or I'll go to YouTube. I want them to see something that, either a picture or actually some animation, something that lets them actually see what this is. And it broadens their horizons. They now have that and nobody can take that away from them. And it changes who. They are Right and I love that, I love it.

Speaker 1: 21:33

Which is exactly why we start children with reading, with illustrations. It gives them that visual yes, q, so that they have not only the words, but they have that vision implanted in their head. And this is what you know is exactly what you're doing. It's just like that curiosity is already there and you just gave it a pinpoint on a map, yes, which is just beautiful.

Speaker 2: 21:58

So thank you.

Speaker 1: 22:00

This is your third book, as we mentioned at the top of the show. The first was called best friends forever a happy tail, and it's about friendship, love and endurance. And the second is his name is Daddy, and it's a love story about your own father. So here we go, you know. And then, of course, your third book this life is more than this coming to pawn about your mother. So can you kind of give us just a brief synopsis of these two other books and what you would hope readers would take away from those?

Speaker 2: 22:34

Sure. Well, this is best friends forever a puppy's tale, and this story is a story of love, loss and everlasting friendship, and my hope is that whoever reads this book will experience, will go through the real life experience of owning, loving and losing a family pet and then finding the courage to love again. This is a resource of care that's going to help parents to walk children through grief, whether it be the loss of a pet, whether it be the loss of a person. I do believe that this story will help parents to reach their children and help them to understand the grieving process and help them to talk through what it's like to lose someone or something that you love and then, as time passes, be willing to love again.

Speaker 1: 23:30

Right, and I'm going to interrupt there because I'm going to say, having read that I also don't want people to think it's only about grief. It is a beautiful story of friendship and love and companionship, until the point that it does come to the grief. So I think it's also a very excellent resource for, you know, parents who have young children that want to have an animal and kind of him through the story of what it's like, what that, that is like what they will. You know not only the responsibility but the friendship and the companionship and the camaraderie. But also you know the loss, because you know, animals don't typically live as long as people. So, yes, it is part of life. So I did want to insert that in there because I don't want them to feel like it's only about grief.

Speaker 2: 24:19

Thank you so much. And the other book is called. His name is my daddy. Now this is a book to me that's talking about the unconditional love of a father for his daughter and it is a book that celebrates the family. It celebrates the value of a father to his children and it shows the powerful expression of love through hands that help. Every part of this book is talking about how my daddy's hands were used to help me and to show me love unconditionally, and that's what this is about, and my hope is that when parents read this with their children, or children read this, that they would recognize what love looks like and how they can use their hands to be helpful and how others can use their hands to be helpful to them.

Speaker 1: 25:11

I think the biggest takeaway I from that book was that, you know, gifts are not things. Gifts are not time and care and the emotion behind them. So I loved that book. I would highly recommend that one and it's like you know, it kind of kind of made me cry. You know, I lost my father just shortly before that book was was published and it kind of, you know, reminded me of a lot of things that you kind of forget as the years passed by. So thank you.

Speaker 2: 25:46

You're welcome. Thank you for sharing that.

Speaker 1: 25:48

You're very welcome so in I think for me. I wish that I had known more about the finances for marketing and making better financial choices as it relates to the future.

Speaker 2: 26:36

Being new as an author. You're excited about opportunities that are presented to you and oftentimes they sound grandiose and they sound guaranteed and they sound impossible to fail. But in reality, there is more to it than just how they sound and how they are being presented. The timing of when a book is being shared or launched makes a difference. Who the audience is makes a difference. How you go about marketing matters. Perhaps it would have been better for me to have my books reviewed or make an attempt to get awards for them, as opposed to trying to get on television right away. So I wish that I had a better gauge on marketing and how to finance that process initially, because I made some mistakes and I spent quite a bit, and I'm actually still recovering from that.

Speaker 1: 27:44

Well, and you know and I'm glad you brought this up because this is something that I see time and time again and it makes me very sad, and you know I'm not immune, we're all you know it's like you know, there's some slick marketers out there and they'll convince you that the sun is green, and you know it is. But you know what I tell people. Marketing is not as complicated. Everybody wants to make it. You are marketed to on a daily, hourly, minute by minute basis. You know what gets your attention and so if it grabs your attention, then you got to ask yourself two questions Is this something that is really going to help me, or am I just fascinated by how they got my attention? And then the second thing is what do I want? We forget this is authors, people go. You know I can get you on this radio station again, on this podcast. I can get you in this newspaper and get you magazine article, and get you this, the, this award, that thing, this, and you're like, okay, yeah, it all sounds great, but you got a hand over cat, and I'm thinking but the problem is, is you don't take it a step further? What am I going to get for that? I'm just giving you my money to do all of this. What am I going to get for that?

Speaker 1: 28:59

Well, part of the problem is is you don't know. So if you go on to, let's say, a podcast and you say, well, I have a new book and that's it, and we talked about the book, and you don't say, but you know, I've got new books coming. I want people to think about this. I want to talk about you know what we're doing here, bringing forward all the reasons why and what's involved in how, the depth of the story. If you don't understand that and if you don't go at the end of the of the program and go, please go buy my book, or please go buy my book and review my book, then you kind of lost that and so you have to look at it and say what do I want?

Speaker 1: 29:36

So it's like I'm going on this podcast, great, I'm going to talk about my book and I'm going to get people to buy my book and stuff like that. So is that my main reason? Do do I want to go on there to get more book sales or do I want to get notice? Or is this trying to set me up so I have a fuller media kit so I can show the bigger TV stations and audiences that that I can handle and help when I'm being interviewed, you know, on on screen, or do I just want to be noticed? Do I want you know, do I want to try and get speaking engagements in certain areas, around certain topics? What is my end goal? Because there's no reason for you to go buy a Ferrari if you don't have a garage to put it in my mind.

Speaker 1: 30:22

You know, it's just you know, and you know you could go to the Ferrari salesman and he'll convince you six ways to Sunday that you should buy that and take it home with you. And then you can home and go and wait. I have nowhere to put this in. Somebody's going to steal it before I go to sleep.

Speaker 1: 30:42

You have to have an end goal in mind and this gets overlooked a lot. And but you also know what gets your attention and, by and large, if it gets your attention to, probably gets other people's attention. So I tell people, when you're trying to figure out how to market things, what would get you to buy your book if you hadn't written it? If you had not written it and you didn't know the person he did write it, what would get you to buy it.

Speaker 2: 31:14

I think knowing that reading the back of the book and seeing that it is helping children to dream big and to be limitless in their thinking and to see beyond their surroundings, that's something that resonates with me 1000%, that would be something that I would purchase as a teacher for my students, because I want my students to experience that life. The other thing that would pull me is that there's a brown skin girl on the face of that book and I want my students, who are mostly brown skin, to see someone who looks like them, aspiring to do things that I want for them.

Speaker 2: 31:55

So those are the two things that would have pulled me to purchase that book.

Speaker 1: 32:00

Well, and you know, and I'm going to tell you that you know, the three legs of the stool for marketing with books is the title, the image on the front of the book or lack thereof, and the description or back cover copy or whatever you want to call it blurb on the back of the book. Those are the three legs of marketing for a book. They're usually the first and only thing people see, and if you haven't convinced them by the end of them reading the title, looking at the image and reading the blurb on the back to buy your book, they're not going to my mind. And that's just the way it is. You know, we see things and we pick it up and we're like, hmm, oh, okay, yeah, that sounds like it.

Speaker 2: 32:44

Yes.

Speaker 1: 32:45

I'm going to talk to you a little bit here, and this is nothing personal, but I do see this a lot of times where we have we're adults, we have an adult mindset, right, but you're writing a children's book that is written for children, so when you write on the back, it's about teaching them a certain thing, and there's nothing wrong with that. However, as a parent, I don't go to the store and go, hmm, what can I buy that will teach my kids something? I usually go. You know, my kid likes mermaids. Let's go see if I can find a mermaid book. Okay, my kid likes puppies. Let's see if we can find a puppy book. And then you read it and does it sound like a book that the kids going to enjoy? This is where the mindset of a lot of times with parents and readers, and there's nothing wrong with including that. It will also teach them. But I would, I would not, I would tell you not to put that in there, but I would also tell you to make sure you add something that'll grab the kid's attention too, because that's again like I said, most parents when they go to go buys and again for the age group, you're writing for it's parents buying books and or reading the books, so they're looking for something that's gonna entertain their kid. There's like the educational part of it is second. I mean, it shouldn't be an S teachers, that's really hard for me to say that. So, but yeah, and you just have to remember to balance that, because even though it is the adult who may or may not be actually reading the book to the child, the story is for the child, so the back cover copy needs to be, again, more for the child rather than the adult. So that's just my thoughts on it, and anybody else that has any other opinions on this, please speak up and let me know. But these are great topics and tips that you're handing out here, because so many times authors don't wanna reveal.

Speaker 1: 34:53

You know the mistakes and they are there. We all make them. We all make them. It's like they're just. You know I can't tell you how many times I've messed up on this stuff, but you know what I know? I don't learn anything from being perfect. I only learn when I mess up. So I mess up a lot, but that's okay. I mean, cause at least I'm learning something new every day. But and that's okay, and I think we need to destigmatize the failure, but I know sometimes it can be a costly mistake and I'm glad that you brought that up and you know we're gonna talk a little bit about this later.

Speaker 1: 35:32

But you know, the one thing that you were talking about is budgeting. It's like I don't care if it's just the marketing or it's just the promotion. Books and being an author requires an investment of time and energy and money. You need to have a budget. You are a business person. Being an author is a profession and in any profession there's certain things that you have to invest in yourself. So have a budget. You know and again, we talked about this a little bit in the green room the wonderful thing about books If you don't do it this year, guess what? There's next year, there's a year after, there's five years from now, there's 10 years from now, there's from now until your life and beyond to promote market and, you know, get that book into the hands of the right reader. So you know, don't.

Speaker 2: 36:25

And for me, as you were talking about writing what's on the back of the book and making it perhaps more for children, I think in my mind I recognize that this is a book that teachers will read. It is a book that parents will read, and so a part of my training, was that I need to write something on the back that will allow a parent to see okay, this is an opportunity for me to teach my child a lesson in a fun and meaningful way.

Speaker 2: 36:55

So, while you are sharing with me that the back of the book needs to be written for children, also, in the back of my mind it needs to be written for the teacher. It needs to be written for the parent who was doing the purchasing of the book as well, so that they can see a two-fold process. While it's enjoyable for my child to read, there's also a lesson that can be learned in it. So I'm thinking of all of those things while I'm writing as well.

Speaker 1: 37:22

Right, and you know, and sometimes I'm just gonna say you're kind of over complicating the process because most adults in reading the blurb of the story, are gonna recognize those lessons anyway. Okay, okay, yeah, so they're gonna go. You know this story is about Nan and you know, dreaming and exciting and going on to her adventures and stuff. They're gonna go. Oh, this is about. You know they're going to get that there's a lesson in there somewhere and so you know. But again, it doesn't hurt at the end to say this book also aids in, you know, helping you know, your reader recognize or learn or whatever you wanna put in there.

Speaker 1: 38:05

But Absolutely. My point on that is that should not be your first go-to on a book blurb is the teaching moment or the critical moment. Self-help books do that a lot, where it's like they list the benefits and stuff like that, and there's nothing wrong with that because it is primarily a teaching book. But children's books are supposed to be enjoyment and entertainment first, and then we get sneaky with the lessons underneath that's. But you know there's no. Again. I will say this too there's no right or wrong way to do it. It's whatever works for you.

Speaker 1: 38:46

But I would say, just make sure you're covering the basis, because it is your children who are reading these books and we have to remember, even in picture books, you know the older children in that age group are gonna be reading these books themselves. You know I see this all the time. Go to Barnes, noble and you know you'll see. You know a mother come in and she's perusing whatever genre she likes and the kids are over in the children's section and they're pulling books off and they're looking at them and they're looking at the illustrations and they're reading the back of it to each other going oh, I want that book, no, I want that book. So you know, we also have to remember that.

Speaker 1: 39:24

You know they're the ones that are going to be the ultimate focus of the book and I think parents and teachers not to give them secondary status, but they are secondary to the focus of most children's books. And also, you know, we want them to read, we want them to be entertained, we want them to find joy. So that's it, all right. All right, I don't want to go too far off of the diving board on that one. So, having gone through all of this and now three books in, what advice would you offer to other new authors or writers about writing children's books? You're an expert now.

Speaker 2: 40:13

I would offer this advice that if you are interested in writing books for children, that you would begin the process, that you would begin to put pen to paper and write your thoughts down a little bit, by the day, or set aside a specific amount of time and then get it done. But now is the acceptable time. Do it now, because there are so many children and so many ideas that can be expressed in books that will help children and ultimately that is my goal when I'm writing a book. I want that book to be of assistance, I want it to be an aid, I want it to be a comfort, I want it to be something that a child will hold as endearing because it is helpful to that child in some way. So I would say to you begin writing, and begin writing now and put those thoughts down, because they will help.

Speaker 2: 41:09

They will help someone's child and that's the objective to be of service to children when we're writing those books.

Speaker 1: 41:18

And ask for help. That's the other thing that I would say.

Speaker 2: 41:22

Don't know everything. There's so many parts to the writing process. Ask for help and don't be afraid to agree to disagree with some of the things that may be given to you, but ask for help, particularly if you're brand new at this. You don't know, I didn't know, and I had to ask questions and I received a lot of different versions of truth. And what resonated with me is what I move forward with. So those are the two things that I would say Do it now and ask for help.

Speaker 1: 41:52

Yeah, absolutely. And, like I said, even there are a million and one ways to do it, indeed, and there's no writer, there's no wrong way. But with anything else, there's an easy path and there's a hard path. Yeah, ask for help. And for those of you I'm going to address this I hear this a lot I don't want to bother. I'm like OK, look, here's the thing, something my mother taught me when I was seven years old Don't be afraid to ask. You're already expecting no, so what? Does it hurt to ask.

Speaker 2: 42:28

That's right. At least get the no, and you might be surprised. You might be, you might be surprised and get the yes.

Speaker 1: 42:34

So she's like don't ever be afraid to ask, because you're already expecting the no, so just get it over with, and oftentimes people get nothing because they never ask.

Speaker 2: 42:49

Indeed.

Speaker 1: 42:52

And so people are always surprised. They're like, oh yeah, I did what you said, I asked them and they were so helpful. I'm like, well, you know, they probably never been asked before, and we're delighted to be asked too.

Speaker 2: 43:02

That's right, that's right.

Speaker 1: 43:03

There's something about that when people go oh, that was helpful and you're just like yes.

Speaker 2: 43:11

It's true, and it's something I think we're taught to not be a bother to people or burden to people, or feel as though we're getting something for nothing. I think all of those things are hindrances in the asking process.

Speaker 2: 43:26

I believe that we're telling ourselves things that prevent us from doing what really is the right thing to do. We need help. We can't do anything and everything by ourselves, and so it's important to ask for help, because somebody has what we need and they would be more than willing to share it if they knew that the need existed. That's been my experience, so I'm getting better at asking. I really am.

Speaker 1: 43:52

Well, yeah, you just made me think of something. It's like people are like oh well, I don't know how to thank you. Well, you know, what you can thank me is by going on social media. We have social media. Go on social media and say you know what? I had this problem and I asked this person and they were so helpful. Guess what? You just elevated you and me.

Speaker 2: 44:09

Yes.

Speaker 1: 44:11

I asked this person and they wrote this book and I read it and it was great and exactly answered my. Again, elevate you and me.

Speaker 2: 44:18

Yes.

Speaker 1: 44:18

Like there are so many simple ways to thank somebody or say thank you, even if it's just, you know, thank you for helping me with this. Indeed, that's right, you know it's. I find so much today is about overthinking and overcomplication of what should be essentially just direct matters. You know so the next time you're stumped, ask the question.

Speaker 2: 44:47

Indeed Because you're not.

Speaker 1: 44:49

you're not going to learn anything more by sitting there and worrying about whether or not you should ask the question. Just ask, that's right.

Speaker 2: 44:55

That's right, that's absolutely right.

Speaker 1: 44:57

And if you feel like you receive something valuable, then thank the person, however that comes across for you.

Speaker 2: 45:04

You know that's right and I thank them regardless because they took the time to share something with you.

Speaker 1: 45:11

Absolutely, it would be great that was. You know that was value right there. But you know my mom always told me again she goes. If you lead with your heart, she goes. You are never going to put a foot wrong. My, my, my, my, my, you know, and she's right, she's like if you lead with your heart, then nobody's going to blame you for anything and they're not going to be upset with you and it's. I don't know If I always I mean I try. I don't know if I'm always successful, but nobody's perfect.

Speaker 2: 45:42

So you're pressing, we're trying and we're pressing, and that's all that matters. And, like you said, if you're speaking from your heart, then that's the best place to speak from and it's that's what matters. If you're doing something out of the kindness and sincerity of your heart, then you rest in that and the hope is that it is received with that understanding that it is from your heart and it is with sincerity that you are sharing it Absolutely.

Speaker 1: 46:12

And, and you know, and here's the thing, you know, we're all in the same crazy world genre, together with authors. We're writers, we're writing books, indeed, and you know, there are no enemies, that's right. The only enemy we have is time, and it's like you know, imagine how much we could do if we band together.

Speaker 2: 46:38

Indeed. Oh my goodness, how true that is. That's absolutely true. The strength of many lies in unity. Absolutely true.

Speaker 1: 46:48

Yes, yes, yes, yes. All right. So In writing such personal stories from your own life, I would find that challenging. So I want to know what has been the biggest obstacle or the most difficult obstacle for you in telling these personal stories and what do you think is your greatest achievement in doing?

Speaker 2: 47:08

that I think you're going to like the obstacles part. It's details. Ok, there are so many details that can be shared in all of the stories that I'm writing Now. The ones that I've written initially are based on true events, and so, of course, there's so much that can be shared. But you're writing children's books and you need to limit the amount of words and you need to recognize that the illustrations will help to bring the story to life as well. So me warning all of the details was my biggest challenge, and having a book editor to say to me guess what? We're going to get these details, but we're going to do it in this way. We're going to let the pictures do this, we're going to let the words do that, then we're going to let some of this go because you don't need it to address what you're trying to address right now in the story.

Speaker 2: 48:00

So, for me, the details was the biggest challenge, because I didn't want anything to be left out, because all of it was really good in my mind and I had to learn, with help, that you can still get across what you're trying to get across without using every single detail that has come to your mind.

Speaker 2: 48:21

The biggest achievement for me is actually finishing a book. I did what my daddy encouraged me to do Scoop. Do it now. All of the thoughts that you have in your head that you want to write down to help children, start writing them, put pen to paper and bring these books to life, and when you do, you are going to help children around the world, in whatever area your book is discussing. So that for me, is the biggest achievement the completing, or the completion of the first book, and then the next book, and then the next book, and then now I have written my very first children's book series. So now we're getting ready to move into that, and that series is addressing my boys. My books have been written about girls and now we're going to give the boys a turn.

Speaker 1: 49:21

All right. Well, we're going to get to that in a minute because we've got a question about that. But that is so wonderful and I'm so glad you were able to tie in my topic with that, and sometimes you just have to trust your reader that they're going to jump the canyon with you.

Speaker 1: 49:42

It's like if you strap them in, good enough, they'll go with you wherever you take them. Yes, and if you don't believe me, go watch the initial Star Trek show. My, my, it was so extraordinary and out of the ordinary that, when it came across, the fact that it found an audience is amazing, and the amount of science that we were willing to accept and believe in in that show, in that genre, that had never. I mean, it's like you know. I mean, yeah, people could probably explain how a warp core works nowadays, but back in the 1960s we're like a warp, what?

Speaker 2: 50:30

Very far and yes.

Speaker 1: 50:33

Well, you know, it's like dry quarters seem like you know very strange things. But back then you have to remember there weren't cell phones, there weren't even mobile phones. It was just kind of like they're walking around with his dad in their hand. It's like that was so far into the future that we couldn't see it, isn't?

Speaker 1: 50:50

that amazing, but you know what the audience watchers were willing to go that far. So sometimes you have to trust your readers. They're gonna go with you. Don't go as long as you give them a reason. Yeah, all right. So what keeps you motivated?

Speaker 2: 51:10

Oh, the children who are going to purchase the books. I know that I was born to teach and I believe that I am extending my teaching into the writing that has been given to me as a gift, and so I desire to help children. I want children to know without question how valuable they are, because I recognize that once you tap into your value, then you're going to start using your gifts to help people, and when you help people, that's going to inspire them to help others and that keeps growing and growing and growing, and growing and growing.

Speaker 2: 51:48

When I do what it is that I was birthed to do, that is going to inspire others to do what it is that they were birthed to do, and that will continue to happen. And so that is my heart's desire to make sure that I am giving all that has been given to me so that children will recognize who they are, that they would appreciate who they are, that they would accept who they are, that they would develop who they are and then that they would give who they are. It's the gift that keeps on giving. That's what motivates me.

Speaker 1: 52:21

Right, you and I are on such a same page. You know, my tagline for my books is finding the superhero in you, and I think that's exactly what you're telling them.

Speaker 2: 52:30

Yes, yes, yes, yes.

Speaker 1: 52:33

It's like it's there, All of it's there.

Speaker 2: 52:35

They have it, it never grows old.

Speaker 1: 52:38

It never grows old. And here's the wonderful thing it's never too late. You're never too old.

Speaker 2: 52:43

Yay.

Speaker 1: 52:44

You're never too old to start and you're never too old to try something. Yes, I mean. I mean people, look at my age. I'm on TikTok. If I can do it, anybody can do it, I love it.

Speaker 2: 52:58

I love it. Inspiring, I love it.

Speaker 1: 53:02

Well, you know, again it's like my grandkids kind of laugh at me and I'm like look, you know, I don't worry about social media because if I do it wrong, some helpful teenager is going to come along and tell me I'm doing it wrong. There you go, there you go. It's a little weird. There's one last thing I have to worry about.

Speaker 2: 53:18

That's it. Keep it positive. I love it. That's it. Find the good in everything, one out. That's it.

Speaker 1: 53:24

There you go, all right. So here on season two, we have been focused on reviews. I know we've covered a lot of topics today, but reviews are very, very important to authors. They are the lifeblood of what we do. It's one of the few ways that we get to hear from our readers, get any kind of feedback on our books, our writing and what you guys think about it. So the next time you read a book, make sure you go, thank the author and tell them what you thought of their book by leaving them a review.

Speaker 1: 53:54

Reviews don't have to be complicated. They can be simple. They can be something as I like this book, or I think this book was great because, or I recommend this book for whoever, or you know, this was not my cup of tea. Whatever you know, as long as it's civil and it's not mean, every review is welcome. The authors learn, the readers learn, we all learn. So don't be afraid. Leave a review. It doesn't have to be complicated, it doesn't have to be complex.

Speaker 1: 54:24

You can always leave a review wherever you purchase the book. If you can't remember where you purchased the book, there are a couple of places you can go. Goodreadscom is one of the few places you can go and leave a review for any book, also Bookbub. They may not have the book, but you can request it. They add the book to their catalog and you can leave a review for that as well. But you know, and if you seriously cannot find a place to leave the review, you can always go on social media and tag the author. They would be so grateful and so thankful that you did so. Don't forget to thank the author. With that in mind, we have been putting our guests on the spot and I'm going to ask you to give us a review of your book. Life is More Than this. Covington Pond.

Speaker 2: 55:08

Okay. Well, I would say that Life is More Than this. Covington Pond is an inspirational story about a little girl named Nan who wonders and dreams with her eyes wide open, always imagining the possibilities. It is a story that inspires children to see beyond their surroundings and to recognize that there is life and activity, and hope and inspiration beyond what my eyes can see.

Speaker 1: 55:48

Awesome five star review and I have to agree with you. It is a beautiful, joyful book and I can't wait for the next one to come.

Speaker 2: 55:59

So thank you.

Speaker 1: 56:01

Thank you so much for that and again I encourage all of our listeners to go out and buy a copy of her new book, life is More Than this, covington Pond, as well as her other two books His name is my Daddy and Best Friends Forever, a Puppy's Tale. They are available on Amazon. The new book, life is More Than this, covington Pond, is coming out on March the 8th. You should be able to go in pre-order that. I believe she has it up on her websites. Don't run out of the room for pencil and paper. I'll have all of that stuff for you in the show notes, so we'll get you linked up to her books and to everything to do with Miss Portia. Having said that, you kind of gave us a little hint, but now I want more details. What's next?

Speaker 2: 56:48

What's next is my very first children's book series, and the series is called the Adventures of Itty Bitty Billy Brown, and in this series I'm writing five books. I've already written them. The first one says Itty Bitty Billy Brown is smart. The next one is Itty Bitty Billy Brown is tough. Next one is Itty Bitty Billy Brown is disciplined. Then Itty Bitty Billy Brown is, or has, character.

Speaker 1: 57:22

And.

Speaker 2: 57:22

Itty Bitty Billy Brown is oh, my goodness, I lost the last title smart, tough, disciplined with character and fast. Itty Bitty Billy Brown is fast and they are written with a rhyming scheme. And again, all of those books are written to inspire my young boys that they can be who they desire to be.

Speaker 2: 57:49

They can have what they desire to have, because there's greatness on the inside of them, and it's time for me to start helping my boys out. I've got a classroom full of boys. Most of the time, I do have a classroom full of boys and I want it so much to write something for my boys, and so that's what we have now those five books in that series. I'm excited about that when I have a character in my brain.

Speaker 2: 58:11

I see him as a doll. I see so many different things that I will be able to do with him and I am hoping to inspire my boys with him, itty Bitty Billy Brown, being smart, tough, fast, disciplined and with character.

Speaker 1: 58:31

Awesome. Well, that sounds like a plan. We'll have to have you back here on the writer's parachute. I would love to do that. These books out and available. I would love to talk to you about Itty Bitty. Billy Brown, that sounds like an amazing adventure. All right, so where can we find your books? What retailers? You also mentioned your website and do you have any? We talked about the new book coming out, any other sales or anything you would want to share with the listeners?

Speaker 2: 59:01

Well, my books are going to be found. You can get autographed copies of my books at PortiaYClaircom. That's my website, portiayclaircom, for autographed copies. If you wanted to purchase another copy that's not autographed, you can go to Amazon and other retailers like Walmartcom, barnes, noble Books, a Million, I believe Target also, but these are on the website. They're not in the physical stores. You would have to go to the websites to purchase those books. But if you want an autograph copy, you can always go to PortiaYClaircom and I will be more than happy to autograph copies for you and mail them directly to your home.

Speaker 1: 59:44

All right, awesome. We'll make sure we put that in the show notes form. Her books are available worldwide, which means they're pretty much in any retailer that provides books. So if you do end up at a retailer and they don't have a copy of one of her books, please just ask for it. They have the availability to get it. You have to understand that there are millions and millions of books available out there. They don't have enough shelf space to carry all of them. Doesn't mean that they don't appreciate her books, but you asking for them will probably cause them to carry them. So please do ask.

Speaker 2: 1:00:18

And my book will also. Two of the books will be highlighted at the London Book Fair. It was on March the 12th, his best friend's forever puppy's tale, and life is more than this. Covington Pond will be at the London Book Fair this year.

Speaker 1: 1:00:37

All right. Also and we did not talk about your award You've won some pretty amazing awards for the books, and I think most of them are for the first book best friend's puppy's tale, right? Yes, so you have won a literary Titan Book Award, a Mom's Choice Gold Award, the Book Fest Award and the International Impact Book Award. So congratulations.

Speaker 2: 1:01:08

Thank you so much, thank you so very much.

Speaker 1: 1:01:11

See. So even if you think I mean this just goes to prove my point right here, we were sitting here listening to her tellings about all of her terrible mess ups and mistakes and missteps and everything, and these are some pretty impressive awards. So even then, even then, we still got you to the right place. An amazing award. As I said, she's an award winning author. These are truly gems to have on your bookshelf for your young readers. Life is more than this. Covington Pond is out on March the 8th. His name is my Daddy, is already out and available, as is best friends forever A puppy's tale. These are all by Portia Y Clare. Again, we'll have links for you in the show notes. I know you're also on social media. Where can they find you on?

Speaker 2: 1:02:04

platforms. You can find me on Facebook at Portia Y Clare, and you can find me on Instagram at PortiaYclare. I'm also on LinkedIn Portia Y Clare.

Speaker 1: 1:02:21

You're also on Goodreads too, but we need to talk about claiming your author again.

Speaker 2: 1:02:26

OK, ok, now may I share one more thing Before we close. On the 8th of March, we're having our book launch celebration for Life is More Than this Covington Pond, and I'm hoping to go on Facebook Live and Instagram Live. It's from 5 to 630. And we will be launching the book then, and, in addition to that, we are currently having a fundraiser for Life is More Than this Covington Pond. I'm making an effort to gift that book to the first through third grade students at Benetsville Primary School, and so I'm asking those who can to please make donations so that we can purchase books for that group or those groups of children at the primary school in Benetsville, south Carolina. So if you can support that cause, please do. Thank you so much.

Speaker 1: 1:03:19

You're very welcome, and here at the Writers' Parish we're going to offer to buy the first 10 copies.

Speaker 2: 1:03:24

Oh, thank you. Thank you so very much.

Speaker 1: 1:03:28

You're very, very welcome and make sure it. I'm sure it is a very good school. It's a primary school. It's probably in a very poor neighborhood, as Portia mentioned, and we want to help these kids. We want to make sure that they have all the resources and things that they need, and if getting books in their hands is what they need, then I am more than willing to do that. My life is about getting kids reading, reading again.

Speaker 2: 1:03:56

Yes, indeed, give the gift of literacy.

Speaker 1: 1:03:58

There you go, all right. So any other upcoming events, giveaways, newsletters or anything else you'd like to share with the audience before we go, do our tip of the week.

Speaker 2: 1:04:08

You can sign up for my newsletter at my website, which is PortiaWyeClairecom. Other than that, I think we've talked about everything that is current at this point. Thank you for this opportunity.

Speaker 1: 1:04:19

You're very, very welcome. I'm so glad that you were able to come on today and talk about your new book. I'm very excited and always thrilled to have you here on the show. So let's go ahead and jump over and talk about our tip of the week. So Ms Glare mentioned marketing expenses and budgeting, so let's talk about that for a minute. So I'm going to work at this list backwards.

Speaker 1: 1:04:44

We talked about this budgeting. If you don't have a budget when you start about how much you're going to spend on supplies, you're going to need to write your book, and I mean that could be anywhere from pens and paper to computer programs, to assistance and help and editing and trying to get somebody to help you do the book cover and guiding you through the process of getting your book available and published. So have a budget for that. But beyond that, you're going to need some kind of marketing and promotion budget. You're going to need to know what it is that you want.

Speaker 1: 1:05:28

I mean, do you just throw your book on sale, for you know, let's say, we've got St Patrick's Day coming up and Easter coming up and Mother's Day coming up, or are you just going to throw your book on sale and hope and pray, or do you have a book that has something to say about motherhood? Like her book, life is More Than this, coming In Pond, that would be an excellent Mother's Day gift. It's about a mother sharing her story of what got her to the point that she is so that she could give Portia an amazing start in life, which she is paying back now. It's about that sickle-ness of stories. Well then, maybe that would be a better point, to make a sale, rather than just giving them $5 off or something. Maybe that would be a better point. So think about, stop and think about why you're doing these things and what would catch the ear of your audience.

Speaker 2: 1:06:33

Not everybody else's audience your audience.

Speaker 1: 1:06:36

You know your audience. You know why they're reading the book. You know why they're buying your books. Talk to them, don't talk to everybody else. You're not trying to make a viral video here. You're trying to get your readers. You're trying to get to your readers and get the books in their hands. So think about that, which brings us to marketing. Marketing is about getting the connection between you, the author, and them, the reader, through your book.

Speaker 2: 1:07:10

What is?

Speaker 1: 1:07:10

it about your book. Now, I understand that books are typically about one topic, one subject. However, there's so many other things connected to it. What can you talk about which would catch the ear of that reader, to get them to look at the book and realize, yes, this is something amazing that I really want, because, again, it isn't so much that they're going to hear that the story is about this or that, as I outlined with the connection to mothers. I'm not sure if Miss Portia ever thought about that connection as using it for marketing, but it is one of the outside of the box ways that you can think about marketing.

Speaker 1: 1:07:53

Think about these moments in time. Why do we celebrate Mother's Day? Why do we celebrate Easter? Why do we celebrate St Patrick's Day? What is it about those? And, quite frankly, I'm not sure I make the connection as to why that means we have to spend more money to buy stuff and sales and stuff like that, but it is what it is, so we take advantage of it. But again, make that personal connection, because reading stories, especially for a child, will stay with them for the very rest of their lives. They will always remember that one story, or maybe the five stories, maybe the 10 stories depends, but they're always going to remember one story that really changed their life. That might be your book, it might be Portia's book, it might be my book, it might be somebody else's book, but they'll never get that moment if they don't get it in their hands. So figure out a way to make that connection between you and that reader through your book. So that's all there is to marketing.

Speaker 1: 1:09:05

Now expense. We're gonna talk about expense in very briefly and very shortly. There are hundreds and I do mean hundreds, if not thousands of ways to promote and market your book and what you do without spending a dime. You just have to be very, very creative. Sometimes they're even more effective. So before you actually lay down that money, figure out what you're going to get. They call it ROI, which is return on investment.

Speaker 1: 1:09:41

It's really simple for something that sounds really complicated. So basically, what it means is if I give you $200 to promote my book, am I gonna get $200 with a sales back, or $200 worth of getting me to the next level, or $200 with speaking engagements, or $200, am I going to get something of $200 worth of value back for that? And if the answer is no, then walk away, because you only have so many of those that you can give away. So think about what it is you're going to get in the end and it may be different things each time. Maybe it is to get you to the next level, where you can be on a national television, a radio station or a syndicated podcast or something of that nature, and that's perfectly fine If that's a value to you and that's going to help you find your audience or get a broader audience. That's all good and great If that adds value to you.

Speaker 1: 1:10:39

If that's not something you're interested in, then what are you interested in? What is it that you're investing your money in? So ask yourself that question. See if you're getting some kind of return on that value. And honestly, even then there's no guarantee that you're going to get it, but at least you have a better shot. If you know what you're trying to get, then you have a better way of deciding whether or not you got that. Because a lot of times I see this where people are going yeah, like I hired this person and they're helping me and I've got this interview and that interview, and I'm going here and I'm going there, and then, like six months, later.

Speaker 1: 1:11:18

I'm like well how'd that work out for you? I'm like I didn't get very many sales. Was that your goal? Well, I don't know what my goal was. Okay, well then, how do you know it wasn't successful? I don't know.

Speaker 1: 1:11:30

So, yeah, set some concrete goals. And again, my last thought on that is have a marketing plan. Have a plan. Who is your audience? How am I going to reach that audience? That's all marketing is. Who's my audience? How am I going to reach them? Is it going to be ads? Is it going to be interviews? Is it going to be speaking engagements? Is it going to be school visits? What is it going to be? How much am I willing to spend on each? What is success? What is not success? How do I get into schools?

Speaker 1: 1:12:06

Well, you know somebody who is either a teacher or someone who is related to a teacher, or somebody related to schools or teaching or school districts or something of that nature. Or you know a parent. I mean, if they're parent, their kid's got a teacher. There's your way in. So use those resources wisely.

Speaker 1: 1:12:28

Again, take these things to heart. Always have a budget, watch your expenses and have a marketing plan. That's my tip of the week. Of course, we could go so much further. Talk, so much more. You know, money is one of those things that we all just kind of crammed in. I know, I know Expense, expense, expense, but we're going to leave it there for right now. So if you have more questions, of course you can always reach out to us at info at thewritersperissuecom, and we want to thank Ms Portia-Claire for being here with us today. I am so grateful and so thankful for you guys to allow me to be the host here on the Writers Parachute, guiding Author and Writers Dreams to Perfect Landing. We hope that you find the Writers Parachute a safe, creative space for all you and all of your dreams to land well too. Until next time, guys, bye.

Speaker 2: 1:13:23

Bye-bye.